With the Champions League final imminent, the current threat level of Cristiano Ronaldo finding an opportunity to publicly take off his shirt is rated by UEFA as “there’s nothing more we can do to stop him.” Were there betting markets on such an outcome, bookies would also have the Real Madrid striker/centre-of-attention massively odds on... Read More

One of the problems in getting the lardy, screen-addicted population of 21st century cities to take some exercise is keeping them doing it once they’ve given it a shot. Too many people find the treadmills of the gym cruel and unpleasant, and not something they often wish to return to. So they don’t. It would... Read More

Here’s a terrifying paragraph. “The greatest predictor of an early death is not obesity, physical inactivity or binge drinking. It’s whether you are popular. In fact the only worse thing for your health than being a loner is being a smoker.” Anyone with access behind the Times paywall may have stumbled across this shocking news today... Read More

It’s no secret that The Peacock likes to see a little colour in a wardrobe – the traditional British colour palette of grey, navy and camo just doesn’t quite quicken the pulse as much as one would wish. “To the rescue then, come Gucci, who in a debut capsule collection for online superstore Mr Porter, have... Read More

Here’s a valuable lesson for any young politicians watching: if you’re ever tempted to cut corners by lying and making things up, or wish to curry favour with your posh friends by giving them intel on pesky journalists so they can go and settle a score with their Old Etonian fists, just remember that you may one day... Read More

Many people began their personal celebrity monitoring routine this morning with the news that Tiger Woods is in a spot of bother again. After cashing in his status as a near-unbeatable golf legend in exchange for a reputation as an international ladies’ man in 2009, Woods’ search to rediscover his old mastery of the golf sticks has... Read More

Men – here’s an interesting challenge. Now that thanks to the promptings of the Prince Harry you’ve dabbled with “opening up”, how about putting into words something that feels genuinely awkward and shaming, such as admitting to loneliness? If you can find anyone to open up to, of course. Research published by the Royal Voluntary Society earlier... Read More

The recently published book The Black Door: Spies, Secret Intelligence and British Prime Ministers, by Richard Aldrich and Rory Cormac (William Collins) contains a magnificent instance of dating innovation, which has probably never been attempted before or since. One chapter features the arrival at Portsmouth harbour in April 1956 of a ship carrying Russian premier Nikita... Read More

According to the Second Edition of the Oxford English Dictionary, there are 171, 476 words in current use in the English language, with a further 47,156 words that have fallen into obsolescence. Quite how many of these are swear words is unrecorded, but the key ones, the diamonds and pearls, probably number fewer than a... Read More

There is one mood that the press enjoys above all others, and that is hysteria. Journalists who miss the opportunity to alchemise a fragment of information from ho-hum to OHMYACTUALGOD risk on the spot dismissal within most media organisations. Exhibit A is the weather, especially where the prospect of snow causing total national collapse is concerned.... Read More